The Night Shift
by NikkiB1973
Summary: Harry Kim has just been given control of the night shift on Voyager. With Tom and B'Elanna being ordered to join him by the captain as punishment for their indiscretion and Seven and Chakotay added into the mix, it is certainly going to be an eventful night... Set in an AU. A short humorous story.
1. Chapter 1

**The Night Shift**

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to the respective persons involved with the show. I am just having fun with the characters.

**Part One**

Harry Kim strode purposefully toward the bridge, humming quietly to himself. He was in a very good mood indeed. Only that morning a tired looking Janeway had made a personal visit to his quarters and informed him grumpily that she had considered his request for more responsibility, and as a result, had decided to give him a chance at the helm by allowing him to take command of the night shift. Harry's cheeks flushed red as he recalled the impromptu meeting. He had told the visitor at the door to come straight in, thinking it was Tom Paris arriving early to go over their new holodeck programme, when instead it had been the captain striding in. Unfortunately for poor Harry he was still only half dressed and it had been an uncomfortable meeting indeed. Janeway had looked above his head when she imparted her news and before she left had said sarcastically that she hoped he would be wearing his full uniform when he took over the bridge, not just his vest and boxers.

Harry shook this thought from his mind, he hardly wanted to see the captain again with a red face when he took over command. A wide smile spread over his face..._taking over command_...he liked the sound of that. Glancing around covertly to make sure that no one was watching, he did a little jig and then quickly carried on his way.

XXXXXX

Tom yawned and ran a hand through his hair making it stand up in spikes. He had been navigating the ship for eight hours straight along the most boring route imaginable. To alleviate the boredom he had made a sneaky call to B'Elanna on a private comm. Signal. Unfortunately for him, being a bit clueless about the sophisticated workings of Voyagers overcomplicated communication channels, Tom had managed to broadcast his intimate conversation with B'Elannna to the mess hall. At that point the Captain had been making a toast to Tuvok about his distinguished career in Starfleet, as she had raised her glass it had dropped from her fingers as Tom's voice boomed loudly through the room echoing off the walls.

The other officers who had also been present had burst out laughing as Tom described in vivid detail how much he missed his half Klingon lover. The captain had been livid and after hitting her comm badge in anger and demanding their presence in the ready room,she had literally run from the mess hall to confront the two of them.

"I have never had to deal with such blatant dereliction of duty in my life..." she had thundered at her two chastened crew members.

B'Elanna flashed Tom an irritated glance before trying to smile sweetly at the captain. Smiling was not really B'Elanna's forte and it looked more like a snarl as she confronted Janeway. "I apologise Captain..." she said, not sounding the least sincere, in her mind the situation was entirely the thought of her clueless boyfriend.

The captain stepped back in alarm as she looked at B'Elanna's fierce expression. "It is rather too late for that. What do you have to say for yourself Tom Paris." She barked at him.

Tom gave her a sheepish smile. He couldn't really understand what all the fuss was about. The last few days had been yawn inducing and he thought his little slip up had been at least entertaining. He shrugged his shoulders and flashed her one of his winning smiles. "All I can say Captain is that it won't happen again. I am sorry..."

Janeway was not in the least impressed by Tom's nonchalant attitude. Maybe a couple of night shifts added to his day duties would give him the wake up call he needed. As for B'Elanna she could join him in his punishment. The Captain was heartily sick of the two of them sneaking off when on duty to have their little romantic interludes. She narrowed her eyes and leaned across her desk as she spoke.

"Well I can tell that you are both not taking this seriously. Maybe a couple of night shifts added to your hours will make you realise that I will not tolerate your juvenile behaviour." She sat back and smiled smugly as she watched the horrified expressions crossing their faces.

B'Elanna was just about to issue a retort when Tom clamped a hand over her mouth and told the Captain that they accepted their punishments. Weird sounds were coming from B'Elanna as she tried to speak through Tom's hand. He gave Janeway a cheeky grin and bundled his girlfriend out of the ready room. Janeway stared after them in shock, in all her years as a Starfleet officer she had never had to deal with such disregard for authority. She hit her comm. Badge again and ordered her first officer, Chakotay, to join her. She was irritated when she got no response. What was happening on this ship? The last time she had seen him he had been sitting next to Seven of Nine in the mess hall (a little too close actually now that she thought about it). Tuvok had been under the impression that something was going on with the former Borg and her second in command. Janeway had dismissed this at once. Really, she had never thought the impassive Vulcan would engage in idle tittle tattle, then again he had been hanging around Neelix a lot lately.

Kathryn stretched her muscles and gave a heavy sigh, she really needed a rest. Resolved to give in to Harry Kim's pleas about being given more responsibility, she marched from the room, heading for her third surprise of the day.

XXXXXX

Tom took his hand away from B'Elanna's mouth and stood grinning at her as she unleashed her anger at him. After a few moments she finally ran out of steam and, breathing heavily, she demanded to know why he was beaming like a loon. Tom leaned down and captured her lips in a heart stopping kiss. He left her completely breathless when he pulled away.

"Don't you see B'Elanna the Captain has done us a favour. When do we ever get shifts that coincide with each others? This will be the perfect opportunity to have some alone time together. The night shift is always slow." He gave her a cheeky wink and a smile finally crossed her face.

"You are sneaky Tom Paris..." she said wryly as she gazed up at his twinkling blue eyes.

Tom laughed and leaned down again to kiss her. "Right back at ya..." he teased.

XXXXXX

Seven and Chakotay jumped apart as the doors to Astrometrics opened unexpectedly and the Captain swept in, her face thunderous. Seven hid behind Chakotay's broad shoulders as she tried to regain her composure. After Janeway had stormed out to confront Tom and B'Elanna, Chakotay had suggested that they take advantage of the Captains distraction and have a little time to themselves. They had swiftly retreated to Astrometrics and before the doors had even shut he had swept Seven into his arms and kissed her passionately. She had been so startled by his sudden move that she had not pushed him away, and instead had gone against her usual instincts, and allowed her human emotions to take charge. Chakotay was an exemplary kisser.

Janeway glared at them both totally oblivious to what had just gone on, she was still livid about the Tom and B'Elanna incident. "I have given Harry Kim control of the night shift and as a punishment I have made Tom and B'Elanna join him for the next two nights. This has all given me a headache..." she told them icily.

Chakotay and Seven exchanged a conspiratorial glance before rearranging their faces into sympathetic expressions."Wise idea Captain..." Chakotay agreed.

Seven nodded in agreement. "Yes Captain..."she said smoothly, she could see that Chakotay was trying to hide a smirk.

Kathryn rubbed a hand over her face. "Well then I am retiring for some much needed rest. I told Harry to contact you if he needs any assistance tonight." She said stiffly.

"That's fine. Have a good night Captain..." Chakotay replied, trying his best to sound sincere.

"Yes, goodnight, Captain..." Seven echoed him as she resumed her normal formal posture.

Janeway looked at them suspiciously for a moment. She recalled what Tuvok had said before about something going on between them. They both managed to maintain their composure while she studied them. However she was feeling increasingly exhausted and dismissed the idea from her mind. "Well goodnight to you both. " She said abruptly before turning on her heel and leaving them alone.

Chakotay's shoulders were shaking with mirth. "That was too funny..." he laughed as soon as Janeway was out of earshot.

Seven couldn't help smiling at his amusement. Her cheeks flushed again as he looked at her intently. "Now where were we?" He questioned mischievously.

Seven, not understanding his joke, was just about to issue a detailed reply to his question when for the second time that day he pulled her in for another kiss.

XXXXXX

Harry was a happy man. He made himself comfortable in the Captains chair and surveyed the bridge with a practised eye. Every crew member was in their place. Tom was at the helm and behind, B'Elanna was standing in his usual spot. He rubbed his hands together anticipating an easy shift. If only his mom could see him right now, her boy in charge, she would be so proud.

Little did Harry Kim know that he was in for one eventful night...

_**A/N-this is just going to be a humorous short story, no more than three chapters. I know everyone is out of character, but I had fun writing it! Thanks for reading! **_


	2. Chapter 2

**The Night Shift**

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to their respective owners. I am just having fun playing with them.

_**A/N-I would like to give a big thank you to my beta on this story SCIFIROMANCE who kindly looked over this chapter for me at the last minute. Thanks honey.**_

**Part Two**

B'Elanna jiggled her legs about trying to get some feeling into them. She had been on her feet all day in engineering and she was now being forced to endure more hours standing as she took over Harry's usual role. She stared resentfully over at the back of Harry and Tom's heads as they sat down in their comfortable chairs. How unfair was that? Why was it that they all had seats and the others monitoring the ships data had to stand? Whoever had designed the bridge's layout must have been a fool. She fidgeted about again as pain shot up her legs.

"Gah...this is ridiculous..." she said out loud.

All heads turned in her direction as she spoke. Tom gave her one of his cheeky smiles but she did not return it. Harry coughed to get her attention. "Something wrong B'Elanna?" He asked amiably.

"You bet there is something wrong..." B'Elanna fumed. "I have spent eight hours on my feet in engineering and now I am being made to stand doing your job. Swap seats Harry I need to sit for a while."

Harry swallowed nervously as B'Elanna turned the full force of her fierce glare onto him. "Err...well I am in command tonight B'Elanna and I need to be where I can see the whole of the bridge. I am sorry but..."

B'Elanna's eyes narrowed as her ire increased. "Need to see the whole of the bridge? Do you have eyes in the back of your head then? You can't see me unless you crane your neck..."

"Hey, hey we need to calm it down," Tom interjected quickly. He was used to handling B'Elanna when she got into this type of mood. Harry had lost his voice and all that was coming out of his mouth was indignant squeaks. "Why don't you come and have my seat at the helm, B'Elanna then you can rest your feet and I can show you some of my flying skills."

B'Elanna looked at him and nodded her head in agreement. "I suppose that's not a bad idea flyboy. The whole thing was your fault after all..." she said grudgingly.

Harry finally regained the use of his vocal chords as he looked at B'Elanna in dismay. "But who will take over your role?"

B'Elanna smirked at him as she drifted past. "Well Harry this is your first test as Captain, when in doubt do the job yourself. After all from that position you will have a clear view of the whole bridge." She retorted slyly.

Snickers echoed around the bridge as the other crew members laughed at Harry's discomfiture. His face reddened as he failed to come up with an answer and he found himself following B'Elanna's suggestion by taking over his normal role.

As a very satisfied B'Elanna settled comfortably into Tom's seat he leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Very well done, I knew you couldn't bear to be too far apart from me all night," he teased her.

B'Elanna just arched an eyebrow and quirked her full lips into a mischievous smile. "Down fly boy, are you going to teach me some of your manoeuvres or not?" She said suggestively.

Tom chuckled as he perched on the console by her side and began to instruct her on how to fly Voyager, the Paris way!

XXXXXX

Seven of Nine sprinkled a load of rose petals around Astrometics as she kept her eyes firmly glued to the padd in her cybernetic hand. She had been researching on how to conduct a romantic date. She had already been through the first five suggestions on the list and each one had worked to perfection. Her pale cheeks flushed red as she recalled the heat shining from Chakotay's eyes every time he looked at her. They were now past the awkward stage as they had begun to get to know each other a lot better. Their first kiss, which she had initiated on their third date, had resolved any outstanding hesitation on both their parts and now they were having as much trouble as Tom and B'Elanna trying to get some private time. Although Tom and B'Elanna had a huge advantage over them, everyone knew about their relationship. Seven and Chakotay had not yet told anyone about theirs, preferring to keep it secret for now.

She surveyed her handiwork and declared herself satisfied. Kneeling down on the carefully arranged picnic blanket, Seven adjusted the wine glasses and ticked off the list of suggested food in her head. She had discovered a talent for cooking, the replicated version never tasted as good. She had learnt during her research that a way to a man's heart was through his stomach, that was definitely the truth in Chakotay's case. She recalled fondly how quickly he would eat his way though whatever she had prepared. Tonight she had gone overboard as he always asked for seconds.

Right on cue the man himself appeared, the large bay doors swooshed open to reveal the tall, well built figure of the man who had captured her heart. Seven allowed herself to smile happily up at him as he walked into the large room and gazed with wonder at what she had managed to achieve in just a short time. Chakotay's dark eyes twinkled as he gave Seven one of his special smiles. She loved the way his dimples showed when his mouth turned up at the corners.

"Do you like it?" She asked shyly.

Chakotay chuckled as he sat across from her. "I love it. You are amazing...have I ever told you that?"

Seven bowed her head, hiding her pleased expression. "You may have mentioned it once or twice..." she conceded.

Chakotay was already reaching for the food as he mumbled his agreement. "This is perfection Seven..." he said with his mouth full.

Seven could only agree...

XXXXXX

Harry was not a happy man at all. Tom and B'Elanna were acting like love sick teenagers putting on a show for the whole bridge. Tom had set the ships controls to autopilot and the two of them had now retreated to the Captains chair, as it was the most comfortable and could seat both of them, glued to each other's sides as they were. He gritted his teeth as B'Elanna let out a loud belly laugh at some pathetic joke that Tom had made.

"I am the real joke here," he thought to himself as he finished entering the last of the data. He pondered what to do, he kept having visions of the Captain making a sudden appearance to check up on his progress. If she saw what was going on he would never have the chance to make his way up the ranks. Sweating profusely and pulling at the collar of his uniform, Harry plucked up all his courage and called everyone to attention.

Each crew member stared up at him as stood before them his heart pounding in his chest. "Err...now as you all know the Captain has placed me in charge tonight and I think it is time that you all started listening to me. I want you all back at your posts and getting on with your jobs."

Silence reigned around the bridge as they all exchanged amused looks. Most of the night crew had slacked off like Tom and B'Elanna, they knew that Harry was a walk over. After a few tense seconds they all erupted into laughter and went back to what they had been doing, totally ignoring a subdued Harry. While he had been issuing his orders, Tom and B'Elanna had sneaked off to the ready room, so they were totally unaware of what had just transpired. They heard the laughter but just assumed someone had told a funny joke. Harry was their friend and they would never deliberately leave him to the mercy of the night crew. Unfortunately they were so caught up in finally getting some much needed private time it had made them a little reckless.

It was at this point that things went downhill quickly. B'Elanna was sitting on Tom's lap when she was thrown onto the floor as the ship suddenly lurched to one side. Tom got up swiftly from his seat and helped her up, before running to the doors of the ready room. They refused to open. He exchanged an alarmed look with B'Elanna.

"Computer open doors..." She bellowed.

"Unable to comply..." came the bland answer.

Tom winced, they were definitely in trouble now...

XXXXXX

Seven's research had shown that on a romantic picnic and sharing a glass of wine, one would link arms and then take a loving sip out of the others glass. Chakotay had given her an affectionate glance at this suggestion. He followed Seven's directions and linked arms with her, they exchanged smiles before proceeding to take a sip...they never got to finish the romantic gesture, the ship lurched wildly and the wine spilt all over their pristine uniforms, leaving blood red stains down the front.

"What on earth?" Chakotay questioned as he rose to his feet and helped Seven up."We better get to the bridge and find out what is happening..."

"I concur..." Seven agreed.

Chakotay gave her hand a quick squeeze. "Rain check?"

"Most definitely..." Seven agreed, even though she wondered what rain had to do with anything. More research was obviously needed.

XXXXXX

Harry was at the helm as he frantically tried to steer Voyager and straighten up her trajectory, he pressed his desperately calling for Tom's assistance, but it appeared that the communication signals were affected too.

He let out a heavy sigh as the rest of the crew scrambled into position. So much for a quiet night!

_**A/N-Thanks for reading!**_

_**Nikki :)**_


	3. Chapter 3

**The Night Shift**

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to their respective owners. I am just having fun playing with the characters.

_**A/N-I want to give a big thank you to SCIFIROMANCE who kindly beta'd this chapter for me. I was nervous about posting this chapter but her kind reassurances gave me the courage to do so. The characters are a bit OTT in this story but I am writing it for fun. I hope you enjoy it too.**_

_**Nikki :)**_

**Part Three**

B'Elanna wrestled with the controls on the door panel; wires and other paraphernalia were scattered on the ready room floor as she used whatever she could lay her hands on to try and get the doors to open. Tom paced up and down behind her, occasionally stopping to run a hand through his hair.

"Any luck yet?" He asked for the hundredth time.

"Does it look like it?" B'Elanna snapped. "Now pass me that metal thingy." She held out her hand as she tried to keep two sparking wires together.

Tom looked mystified. "Metal thingy?"

B'Elanna shot him an exasperated glance. "I have no idea what it's called. It's one of the Captain's scientific artefacts that she insists on decorating this room with. It's the long, thin wiry gadget just over there." She waved her free hand in the general direction.

Tom followed where she was pointing and finally saw what she wanted. He frowned as he picked up the thin metal object. The Captain had various unusual items scattered around the room such as this. On occasion when she was in a talkative mood she would wax lyrical about their history and what they would have been used for. If this ever happened when Tom was in her presence he would always feign some excuse to escape. He often felt sorry for Chakotay who was usually on the receiving end of Janeway's rambling lectures. He admired the older man's patience.

"Tom will you pass it to me before I get electrocuted," B'Elanna's harsh tone snapped him out of his musings. He gave her a sheepish smile and passed her the thin metal object.

He watched as she used it to wind around the sparking wires and then yank them together before reinserting them into the control panel. "That should do it," she declared with a grim smile.

For just one brief second the doors began to slide open before they suddenly banged shut again and all the lights went out leaving them in total darkness. "That wasn't supposed to happen." B'Elanna's voice floated over to Tom in the darkness.

"What do we do now?" He asked as he felt his way over to her.

"Good question," B'Elanna sounded defeated.

Tom found her and pulled her into a comforting embrace. "You know we could take advantage of the situation." He said jokingly.

"Only you fly boy, only you." B'Elanna replied wryly.

XXXXXX

Chakotay and Seven of Nine had reached the large bay doors leading onto the bridge. The lights had been flickering on and off the whole way there. It had been a slow journey, the comm- system wasn't working and the doors refused to open on request. Seven had taken the control panel off and was just about to integrate with it when Chakotay had stopped her.

"I am going to show you an old trick, Seven." He said with a smile. He pulled her behind him and to her surprise he kicked the doors hard with his boot and they opened.

Seven stared at him in wonder. "This is a trick? It is truly magical indeed." She vowed to do some extensive research. She was already calculating how much time she could save if she could use this magical trick when any of the equipment in Astrometrics malfunctioned.

As they walked onto the bridge they were greeted with chaos. The main lights had switched off and the emergency lighting had taken over, as they were not so bright they cast an eerie glow. Chakotay spotted Harry at the helm, he was trying desperately to keep Voyager on course; the view screen was down and smoke was billowing out of some of the control panels.

"What on earth has happened here?" Chakotay muttered in disbelief.

"It appears that Harry Kim has lost control of the ship and some of the equipment has malfunctioned, Commander," Seven said unnecessarily.

Chakotay gave her a fond smile. He loved her talent for stating the obvious. "It appears so." He agreed. "Shall we rescue him do you think?"

Seven arched her metallic eyebrow, she could hear the teasing tone to his voice. Her lips twitched as she tried to keep a straight face. "I think we may have to, otherwise we will never get back to our picnic." She quipped.

Chakotay stood to one side and ushered her in front of him with a wave of his hand. "Ladies first."

Seven strode purposefully forward, shoulders back and eyes facing forward. Chakotay followed close behind doing his level best not to show how much he admired the rear view.

XXXXXX

Harry was still at the helm doing his best to keep Voyager on course. His eyes showed his panic as the ship suddenly lurched to one side violently, sending all the crew members who were not holding onto anything tumbling from their posts and onto the hard deck.

"Tom what do I do?" He mumbled to himself as the lights on the console began flashing and strange numerical sequences took the place of the usual flight co-ordinates.

Seven was the only one to remain upright when the ship spun out of control. Chakotay wasn't so lucky, he lost his footing and collided with one of the junior officers. He groaned as he tried to regain his composure.

"Are you damaged Chak...Commander?" Seven called out to him as the emergency lights on the bridge went dim and then turned off completely. Everything was now plunged into darkness.

"I'm fine, Seven. I just can't see. Where are you?" There was an anxious tone to his voice, all playfulness gone as the severity of the situation sank in.

"I'm right here Commander." He felt her hand, the one encased in metal, touch his and he caught hold of it gratefully as she assisted him back onto his feet. "Thankfully my optical implant does not render me as helpless as the rest of you. I can see in the dark."

Chakotay did not have to see her face to know that she was probably trying to hide a smile. He kept hold of her hand and she led him forward like a blind man toward the flight console. They could hear Harry's panicked mutterings as he tried to wrestle with the ships controls in the dark. "Why me?" He said sorrowfully. "I'll be demoted for this."

"Now, now Harry no one could have predicted this," Chakotay's voice suddenly floating through the darkness made Harry topple over. There was a loud crash as he hit the deck.

"Commander Chakotay," he greeted him hurriedly as he scrambled back onto his feet.

"Don't worry Harry, we will get this sorted out." Chakotay allowed Seven to lead him to the console and he sat down gratefully in the seat. "Now we need to try and get Voyager under control. We need to stop this flight trajectory." He used his fingers to feel along the console until he found what he thought were the correct controls. He flexed his fingers before inputting the codes. "Here we go..."

Voyager suddenly spiralled downward without any warning. The crew on the bridge cried out in panic as they were flung every which way. Chakotay grabbed the console tightly with both hands as he heard Harry's gasp of shock. Seven had been holding onto the back of Chakotay's chair and managed to remain standing.

"I think now would be a good time to try your magical trick again, Commander," she suggested wryly.

Even though they were in a dire situation, Chakotay couldn't stop the laughter from escaping his lips. "Well it can't hurt." He agreed. He gave the console a swift kick with his heavy boot and to his surprise the co-ordinates reappeared in front of him and Voyager suddenly righted herself. "It actually works." He said in wonder.

The emergency lights began to flicker on one by one and the crew breathed sighs of relief that at least they could see again. The bridge was a scene of chaos, pieces of equipment and furniture were scattered haphazardly across the deck. Seven immediately went over to Tuvok's console and began punching in numbers, trying to assess the extent of the damage to Voyager's computer systems. The other members of the crew followed her and returned to their posts. There was something about the cool and collected former Borg that made them want to copy her example. So finally after disobeying Harry's commands for most of the night, the night crew did what they should have done in the first place; their jobs.

Chakotay rose from his seat and dusted himself down. A sheepish Harry was standing before him looking like his world had ended. Chakotay felt rather sorry for him. He decided to be gentle, after all he was only too aware how others could take advantage when it was your first time in command. "Don't look so scared Ensign. Just tell me what happened?" He asked in a sympathetic tone.

Harry took a deep breath and began his report.

XXXXXX

A flushed looking Tom and B'Elanna were both pleased and regretful when the lights in the ready room came back on. They had been taking full advantage of their predicament. B'Elanna had been resistant at first to Tom's romantic overtures but he had pleaded his case, reminding her that they were on opposite shifts for the next two weeks and they should take advantage of their alone time while they had the chance. As there was no more that she could physically do, B'Elanna had caved in; not that she really needed persuading.

"Well it looks like Harry got the ship under control. I was worried for a moment when we went plunging downward." Tom said with a smirk as he helped B'Elanna to her feet.

B'Elanna ran her hands through her thick, brown hair and smoothed her uniform down. "I'm surprised you noticed fly boy." She retorted with a smirk.

Tom glanced around the ready room, like the bridge it had suffered severe upset. All of the Captain's artefacts were scattered across the floor; some were broken into pieces. Chairs and other paraphernalia had suffered the same fate. "The Captain won't be too pleased with the state of her ready room. Poor Harry is going to get it in the neck."

"Not just him, us too." B'Elanna muttered as she glared at the closed doors. "The lights may be back on but we're still trapped in here."

"Have you tried to see if the computer is responding?" Tom asked her playfully.

B'Elanna rolled her eyes at him. "I was just about to do that. COMPUTER OPEN DOORS." She yelled out making Tom wince and put his hand over his ears.

The bland tone of the computer crackled through. The generic voice sounded distorted. "Unable to comply..."

"I'll try the comm-system and see if that is back online," Tom pressed his star fleet badge. "Harry, anyone, can you hear me?"

"Tom this is Chakotay. Where are you?" Tom and B'Elanna exchanged a pained look as their Commander was the one to respond.

"We're in trouble now Chakotay's involved. We'll be done for dereliction of duty," B'Elanna grumbled. "This is all your fault Tom."

"How is this all my fault? You were the one who suggested sneaking into the Captain's ready room for some privacy." Tom replied irritably.

They began to bicker until Chakotay's voice demanded to know their exact location again. B'Elanna tapped her badge. "We're stuck in the ready room, Commander. The doors are stuck." She told him.

"And why are you in there in the first place and not at your posts?" B'Elanna wasn't sure but she thought she caught a hint of teasing in Chakotay's tone.

"Blame Tom," she said bluntly. "Can you get us out of here?"

"Yes, Seven of Nine is going to use her magic touch. Wait there..." Chakotay replied mysteriously.

B'Elanna and Tom exchanged a bemused look. Their friend and Commander had been overly cheerful of late, especially when he was around the former Borg. Secretly B'Elanna had an inkling something was going on between them although Tom had been dismissive when she first mentioned it. Her musings were interrupted when a loud thud made the metal doors sing and right on cue they slid open smoothly.

Seven followed by Chakotay and Harry strode into the room, her back ramrod straight. Her piercing blue eyes roamed the ready room until they settled on B'Elanna and an amused Tom. Her metal encased eyebrow rose as she placed her hands behind her back; there was a hint of a smile playing about her full lips. "I am surprised with your extensive engineering knowledge that you were unable to get the doors to open yourself." She said to B'Elanna.

Tom placed a calming hand on the half Klingon's shoulder as she glowered at Seven. "Something was blocking my attempts." She blustered.

"Tom's lips no doubt," Harry mumbled under his breath.

"What did you say?" She snapped at Harry.

"B'Elanna," Tom warned her. He took over the conversation. "B'Elanna tried her best but for some reason nothing was responding. How did you cure the problem?"

Chakotay and Seven exchanged an amused glance. "Oh just an old trick I was taught as a last resort at the academy." Chakotay responded nonchalantly.

"You used the old if in doubt kick it trick, didn't you?" B'Elanna interjected; smirking.

Chakotay just gave her one of his bland smiles which he used when he was hiding something. "That's irrelevant. What I want to know is why you two are in here and not at your posts?"

B'Elanna's face flooded with colour as Tom began to shuffle nervously. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well you see it was like this...

_**A/N-Last chapter coming soon. Thanks for reading!**_


End file.
